The JV Agreement of KEL-BHEL for KEL's Kasargod Unit will be signed on September 8, 2010 at New Delhi. BHEL will hold 51% of the new JV with the balance 49% with the State Government.

Kerala Soaps, a unit of KSIE under the Department of Industries and Commerce, Government of Kerala in association with the Kozhikode Collectorate, has created the largest pookalam called Snehapookalam, at Kozhikode on August 21, 2010. Made as part of the Onam celebrations, the huge flower carpet, Sneha Pookkalam, was spread over 17,622 Square feet area at the Swapna Nagari on the theme of religious harmony and universal brotherhood. Around 15 tonnes of flowers were brought from Thovala in Tamil Nadu to make the pookkalam. The flowers were of seven different kinds including dahlia, chethi and jamanthi, to represent all the continents. The gargantuan effort started at 10.30 am with writers and spiritual leaders throwing fistfuls of flowers on the floor. Then the 1,000 volunteers, including several hundred students, got into the act and finished the massive pookkalam in a record time of two hours and eight minutes. Titled Sneha Pookkalam, the floral carpet was made on a prize-winning design submitted by C K Suresh, which had doves of peace flying amid people holding hands in friendship.

7,056 employees of nine State owned Enterprises will get a bonus of Rs.11.31 crores this time festive season. A decision on the bonus was taken at a meeting held on August 11, 2010 at Trivandrum under the leadership of Industries Minister Shri Elamaram Kareem and Labour Minister Shri P K Gurudasan. Labour Commissioner C S Reghu and Additional Chief Secretary T Balakrishnan IAS, who is in charge of the Dept. of Industries & Commerce participated in the meeting. KMML, Malabar Cements Ltd., TELK, TTP, United Electrical Industries, Steel and Industrial Forgings, Traco Cable Company, Kerala Electrical & Allied Engineering Company and TCC are the nice PSUs.

The Legislative Assembly has passed the demand for grants to the tune of Rs.414 crores for the Industries and Commerce Department on July 21, 2010 after an extensive debate. Replying to the debate on the demand for grants, the Honourable Minister for Industries and Commerce Shri Elamaram Kareem said that the investor confidence has increases over the last four years and so has the basic infrastructure for industries. The State now had a peaceful industrial climate that was encouraging to entrepreneurs. The State's industrial growth rate of 9% last year was higher than the national average. More than 25,000 MSME units were registered in the past four years.

The Minister also said that the State government was in favour of employees' representation in the managements of State owned Enterprises. The government has taken a policy decision in this regard and the criteria were being worked out. The performance of PSUs was being appreciated at the national level. Ten new units of PSUs would be commissioned by the end of this year. The Titanium Sponge factory being built at Chavara, in collaboration with ISRO would be ready by December this year. The government has also proposed a mineral research institute at Chavara.

The income support scheme implemented for coir workers would be extended to those in khadi and handloom sectors. He also announced the Industries Minister’s Scholarship Fund. While previous governments introduced the voluntary retirement scheme for closure or restructuring, the present government considered voluntary retirement only for revival of PSUs, he said. The feasibility study for a north-south high-speed railway corridor would be ready in five months. Kinfra has acquired 4781 acres for developing industrial parks across the state.